Grand Theft Auto
New World Pictures, USA, 1977.

Three guys Michael, Trevor and Franklin plan the ultimate heist...

Fooled ya! This movie is not related to the video game series. Except maybe as an loose inspiration. It was Ron "Happy Days" Howard's debut as a director and it was produced by Roger Corman. Howard's clan was heavily involved: the story was written by Ron and his dad Rance and Ron's brother Clint has a role in the movie.

Paula Powers' (Nancy Morgan) rich parents do not like her boyfriend Sam Freeman because he is poor. They would like her to marry a rich snob instead. Sam and Paula steal daddy Bigby's (Barry Cahill) Rolls Royce and start a trip to Las Vegas. Nice trip is shadowed by bounty hunters that Bigby's favourite fiancé and sore loser Collins Hedgeworth (Paul Linke) sends after them. Other chasers are Hedgeworth's mom (Marion Ross), Preacher (Hoke Howell), private detectives and a bus full of pensioners. Over-eager Dj Curly Q. Brown (Don Steele) reports the latest events of the chase.

Ron Howard's debut direction is a scathing criticism of forced marriage and a study about love across the class divide from road movie perspective... i.e. it is a silly chase comedy. This is a Low Budget drive-in cult classic from the 1970s, it has not much plot and it is not the most prominent of the car chase comedies but it is likable in its simplicity. It is just gags, amusing car chases and gratuitous car crashes, pure cult trash. Lots of cars are stolen and crashed, and a fruit stand is destroyed just because. The characters are all caricatures and hilariously over the top. The atmosphere is goofy and fun and no one gets hurt too bad. Thanks to talented crew, it has nice camera work and it is fun: both are features that many modern low budget film makers struggle to achieve.

Rating: Good

Starring: Ron Howard, Nancy Morgan, Elizabeth Rogers, Barry Cahill, Rance Howard, Paul Linke, Marion Ross, Don Steele, Peter Isacksen, Clint Howard, James Ritz, Hoke Howell, Lew Brown, Ken Lerner, Jack Perkins, Paul Bartel, Bill Conklin, Robert Weaver, Garry Marshall, Leo Rossi, Rev. Bobs Watson, Jim Begg, Allan Arkush, Gisella Blake, Reed Chenault, Jean Clark, Ancel Cook, James Costigan, Laurence Cruickshank, Bill Denochelle, Jimi Fox, Lars Frederiksen, Wayne Goodwin, Ben Haller, Gene Hartline, Cheryl Howard, Karen Kaysing, Todd McCarthy, Leo Michelson, Eddie Mulder, Cal Naylor, Conrad E. Palmisano, Vic Rivers, Felicitas Sanchez, Rick Seaman, Glenn Towery, George Wagner, Tom Waters